PG Clucks

I’ve been very vocal about my love of friend chicken and have made it one of my life’s quests to find the world’s best friend chicken. In pursuit of this endeavor, I was pointed to Nashville. Everyone I spoke to who’s been there would rave about the Nashville Hot Fried Chicken. Several years ago I made it to Hattie B’s and must say, it’s the best fried chicken I’d had in my life!

I ordered the medium spice combo. Spicy chicken with two sides and a drink. I got the mac and cheese and beans as sides. The sides are solid and nothing to write home about but fried chicken is legendary.

Crispy, juicy, fresh, meaty and spicy as hell! It’s juicy without being oily. The batter is crispy and crunchy but doesn’t flake as you’re eating it. It’s the best friend chicken I’ve ever had and it has made my list of the best things I’ve ever eaten.

There is a relatively new place that has opened in Toronto. Many locals are saying they have the best fried chicken sandwich in the city and Nashville-style hot fried chicken, something I’ve been trying to find north of the boarder for several years now. A friend and I made it up to College street and arrived at PG Clucks.

It’s s tiny shop with a couple fryers that are serving a steady stream of customers. They warn you as you order that it will take about 10 minutes since all the chicken is fried to order. This is key! The Classic has coleslaw, pickles, smoky chili sauce, and buttermilk ranch sauce.

The chicken is crispy and juicy. We ordered the hot version which is balanced nicely by the cool coleslaw and ranch sauce. The bun was nice and soft, and absorbed the greasiness and hot chili oil that oozed out of the fried chicken. The pickle adds a hint of sweetness and a different type of crunch. Next we tried the Jalapeno Honey fried chicken sandwich, a piece of honey dipped fried chicken, sweet pickled jalapeno, fermented jalapeno sauce, and ranch sauce.

Again, crisp, hot and amazing! The jalapenos are surprisingly sweet and the added honey over other the fried chicken is a nice touch to balance out the heat. If you are hungry, try the Big Cluck! It has two pieces of fried chicken, a piece of American cheese wedged in between, lettuce, onions, pickles and mac sauce.

It’s a beautiful mess! This was on a different visit and the chicken is hot, crispy and consistent from trip to trip. Every time, fresh out of the fryer and piping hot. It’s “Big Mac”-like construction results in shredded lettuce and chunks of breading flying about, mac sauce dripping onto the wrapper, and oil dripping down my hand. Or maybe I’m just a ravenous eater. Little from column A, little from column B. Then there is the traditional Nashville hot chicken.

No bones, which is nice. The chicken is crispy, juicy and spicy! It is greasy though and the hot oil oozes out of the chicken. It looks kind of gross swimming in the oil but the flavor is worth the extra time on the treadmill. It’s got some heat. Not Nashville heat, but hot enough.

They also do delivery. Below is the Nashville Hot chicken after delivery (two pieces with coleslaw).

The extra sitting time allows the batter to build up an extra crunch (hence the darker color between the two pictures) and also soak up more of the hot oil. The chicken retains its juiciness and better than any of the chains I’ve order from in town. I also finally tried the tenders (these seem to sell out regularly).

The pieces are a little smaller and insanely juicy for white meat morsels. They also made these Nashville hot (which I didn’t specify in the order but was happy to oblige). I would imagine it’s a nice side to a sandwich if you want more protein but for the value, I’m more inclined to go with the full size for a dollar more (and you get a nice cooling side like coleslaw, mac, or potato salad).

Another “must try” are the donuts, honey crullers to be exact. Apparently the secret menu item is to make a sandwich with the donut instead of the soft squishy buns but for the purists, the donut is incredible on it’s own.

It may be the lightest and most airy donut I’ve ever had! It’s sweet but not overpowering and the inside is almost creamy. A perfect dessert after delicious, hot and crispy chicken!

Nashville will always hold a special place in my heart, but it’s nice to know you can get an amazing fried chicken sandwich and Nashville style fried chicken right in our own backyard.